The founder of a Birmingham-based addiction recovery charity has decided to tackle the Simplyhealth Great Birmingham Run to raise awareness of cuts to treatment services for addiction and the homeless.

Steve Dixon, founder of Changes UK, is taking part in the annual half marathon in a bid to ensure free treatment places continue to be available and Birmingham maintains its reputation as a place to access recovery services.

The social entrepreneur will be joined on the 13.1-mile course by his wife Debbie, staff members and a number of recovery champions who say they owe their lives to the organisation's services.

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Mr Dixon added: "Despite drug-related deaths and homelessness hitting record levels, we are under increasing pressure to find innovative income streams to sustain our services.

"Our vision is to be self-funded, through our social enterprises and partnership projects underpinning all our services.

"However, we need help now and I wanted to shout to the city that the current situation we are facing is at crisis point.

"Training is a huge challenge for me. There have been times when I felt it was completely beyond me....but how can I possibly give up and not do whatever it takes in my power to give another person the hope of a fulfilling life like I now enjoy?"